Thursday, September 3, 2015

Coalition Calls for GE to Continue Cleanup

Last week a broad coalition of
activists, environmentalists, and town officials, representatives of business,
legislators, fishermen and concerned citizens from Albany to Westchester County
gathered at Long Dock Park in Beacon to call upon General Electric to continue
removing PCBs from the Hudson River and not to shutdown later this year.

A
group calling itself the Campaign for a Cleaner Hudson is pointing out that GE
is slated to finish an Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] ordered cleanup
this summer, two years ahead of schedule, but they are seeking to have GE
continue their cleanup as they have for the past 5 years rather than shutdown
this year. They have pointed out that if GE does not continue they “will leave
behind millions of pounds of health-threatening PCB-contaminated sediments both
north and south of the Federal Dam in Troy. That significant pollution will
block the river’s recovery and waterfront revitalization for generations. If GE
won’t accept responsibility for its toxic legacy, New York State taxpayers will
end up paying the bill for the crucial cleanup work, namely the PCB-laden navigational
channel of the Champlain Canal.”

To date 58 communities along the
Hudson River have called for a more comprehensive cleanup and have passed
formal resolutions “to pressure GE to not shirk its responsibilities.” GE
released PCBs into the Hudson from 1947-1977.

Fisherman
Gil Hawkins said the river is cleaner “but it is not clean. What will GE be
remembered for; what is their legacy?” He said the river once had a thriving
fishing industry but today is moving more toward recreational activities. He
said he worries the river may not be clean for his grandchildren and even his
great grandchildren. “Let’s keep this cleanup going until the job is done.”

Environmental
Action Director Manna Jo Greene said GE has been doing a good job “but the
cleanup that they are required under EPA to do is not the complete job. There
is navigational dredging yet to be done and the Federal Natural Resource
Trustees are also asking that additional 136 acre PCB contaminated sediment be
removed from the upper Hudson. Furthermore, we want to be sure the floodplains
and the backwaters that are still highly contaminated are cleaned up thoroughly
and responsibly.”

Beacon
Mayor Randy Casale welcomed everyone to his city and began by thanking Scenic
Hudson, Clearwater, the Beacon Sloop Club [and] the Riverkeeper “because they
have been the people who have been pushing to clean the river up.”

Leo Wiegman, Mayor of the Village of
Croton-on-Hudson, said his town was “delighted” to sign on for a fuller clean
up effort “for the simple reason; a healthy river is good for our protection of
the public health safety and welfare of our community.”

Karen
Mejia, Councilwoman of the City of Newburgh, said the health of the river
should be a concern for everyone.

“Much,
much more needs to be done and we’re going to do it with the coalition that’s
here today,” she said.

Pete
Bardunias, President/CEO of the Chamber of Southern Saratoga County, asked
people to look at the bigger picture.

“What
we’re very concerned about is the economic future of upstate as well as
downstate; we feel it’s all tied together,” he said. “We believe not only
tourism, but manufacturing still plays an important role in upstate New York.”
He said it is important to “make sure our transportation resources are fully
utilized the best they can be and that definitely includes the upper Hudson
River and certainly we would like to see it fully cleaned for the recreational
aspects as well.”

Paul
Gallay, President and Hudson Riverkeeper, said it may appear that GE is being
asked to do something “out of the goodness of their hearts because they are
good corporate citizens or because they think it’s in their enlightened
self-interest. I am here to tell you this is something that General Electric
must do; this is not something that they can walk away from.” He said the
wording of the law does not permit doing the first part of a cleanup “and then
pretend you’ve finished the rest of it.” Gallay said GE has not cleaned up the
floodplains or addressed the damages that the company has done to the fishing
industry and the economic “sphere” and to the communities “who would like to
fish, swim and boat safely. GE owes New York and the Hudson a debt. It has not
paid off that debt simply by completing the first major phase of the
dredging…They owe New York the rest of this cleanup. We are dedicated to
assuring that they pay down their debt 100%.” He pointed out that there are
still hot spots in the river that are
within 200 feet of where the company has been already dredging and it
would be very cost effective for the company to remain to finish the job.

“That’s
how easy it would be to have General Electric stay in the water and finish the
job that would allow a quicker recovery of the river from the stand point of
economic opportunity and the dredging of the Canal and having a quicker
recovery from the stand point of having the fish edible more than one meal a
month…Think about it, the damage done is enormous. We are going to get our
fishery back to some degree but if General Electric tries to say we’re going to
take a victory lap, we’re only half way through the race but we’re thrilled
with our results and we think you should be too. That doesn’t cut it; it isn’t
good enough…We care about whether they finish the job and satisfy the law.”

In
a prepared statement, General Electric spokesperson Mark Behan said the company
is meeting their responsibilities, noting that it was the U.S. EPA that made
the determination of the size and scope of the project.

“GE
is addressing 100% of the PCBs that EPA targeted in the dredging project that
will be completed this year,” he wrote, stating that this project is one of the
largest cleanups undertaken in the U.S.

Behan
stated before the work began the EPA “evaluated a full range of options and
considered detailed scientific analyses and extensive public input. He added
that the EPA has determined that the current project “is meeting the agency’s
cleanup goals and that no additional dredging is warranted.” Behan highlighted
EPA spokesperson Walter Mugdan, who said in November, that his agency “will
not, in the foreseeable future, be requiring or demanding GE to do any
additional dredging.”

Behan
said GE will be dismantling their dewatering, transportation and processing
facilities used for dredging and cleanup, but added that “GE will meet its
obligations in every respect.” He stated that after this GE will continue with
habitat reconstruction in the areas that have been dredged, continue monitoring
the environmental conditions of the river and will evaluate the floodplains on
the shoreline between Ft. Edward and Troy.